o punish all those who fhould any way blafpheme or caft Reproaches upon the Deity. And if among Heathens it was thought very glorious to their Princes to act in fuch a Manner; hw much more muft it tend to the Glory of fuch Governours as pretend to Chriftianity, to promote and defend true Religion, and to advance the Honour of the true God by all poffible Means? which they are the more obliged to,because they cannot but acknowledge themselves indebted to that God for their Crowns and Scepters, and all that Authority which they lay Claim to.

The Duty of Chriftians has, in these as well as other Cafes, a great Agreement with that of a Natural Father; whofe Bufinefs is not only to beget Children and to supply them with all outward Neceffaries upon their coming into the World; but to provide for the Nourishment of their Souls, to procure them fuch Masters and Tutors as may bring them up in the true Faith and Fear of God. And fo Sovereign Princes, to whom God has given the Government of States and Kingdoms, ought not only to maintain the Publick Peace of their Dominions, and to promote their Temporal Welfare; but to oblige all their Subjects, to make Ufe of all fuch Means as tend to their eternal Happiness. They ought to commit their Subje&s to the Care of fuch Bishops and Paftors, as being lawfully call'd to that important Work, may teach them whatever is neceffary to make them found in the Faith, and innocent and exemplary in their Lives and Converfations; they are obliged by that Duty they owe to their Maker, to add the Sanction of their own Laws to those Rules and Orders agreed to by their Spiritual Paftors for

the

the better Management of the Chriftian Body, and to take Care that no Violence be done to their Conftitutions.

The Peace of the Church, as well as of the State, is under the Care of every Chriftian Sovereign: They are to maintain Religion in its Purity, as far as in them lies; to regulate the Clergy themselves, fo that they in their Lives may appear blameless and exemplary: And Theodofius the Great, in his Letters to the Council of Ephefus acknowledges all this to be his Duty: And that Apoftolical Precept feems to be grounded on the Truth of this Doctrine, viz. That firft 1 Tim. 2, of all Supplications and Prayers and Interceffions, 1, 2. and giving of Thanks, be made for Kings and all that are in Authority, that under them we may live quiet and peaceable Lives in all Godliness and Honefty. For the Power of the Supreme Civil Magiftrate in the Church being very great, His Favour only can give a reasonable Affurance of our Peace and Quietness And upon this was founded that Paffage of St. Auguftine, "When the Secular Powers pro"fecute Schifmaticks, they defend Schifmaticos profequuntur, ea Regula fe defendunt, quia their Management by that De- dicit Apoftolus, Qui pote"termination of the Apoftle, ftati refiftit, Dei Ordinationi "They who refift the Power, re- refiftit; non enim fruftra gla <s fift the Ordinance of God; for dium portat. Augustin. Epist. "the Secular Powers do not "bear the Sword in vain." And then, turning his Difcourfe to the Donatifts, the great Schifmaticks of that Age, he fubjoins, "The Secular Powers "knowing the Wickedness of your Schifm, make "fuchLaws against you as they think fit; agreeD 4

Terrena Poteftates,quando

164.

Cognofcentes veftri Schifmatis nefas, conftituunt adverfus vos pro fua follicitudine & poteftate quod vo lunt.

ably

"ably to that Care which lies upon them, and "that Power which is in their Hand."

And tho' thofe Laws given to the People of Ifrael, by God Himself, feem fufficiently obligatory and authentic, and tho' it may be truly faid of them that, they were the fevereft of all others; yet it never was imputed to the Jewish Monarchs as a Crime, that they enforced the Laws of God by their own: But, accordingly as they acted in Matters of Religion with a well guided Zeal, or with a Lukewarm Indifference, fo are they always cenfured or recommended to Pofterity. And fhould we fuppofe, (which yet we have no Reafon to do) that Secular Princes are generally fo far to feek in Divine Matters, as not to be capable of animadverting upon encroaching Errors; yet fince they have generally thofe about them who are eminent for Prudence and extenfive Knowledge; and fince Chriftian Princes have taken fome of the Spiritual Governours of the Church into their Bosom Councils ; it would be very unreafonable and ridiculous to believe that they ought not to make Use of their Superior Authority to reprefs Schifms and Herefies, and to give all juft Encouragement to regular and fober Piety. And it would be abfurd to think it is the Glory of a crown'd Head to promote Christianity, and at the fame Time to charge them with Prefumption who endeavour to fupport it in its Purity. And indeed, whatever the Melancholic Conceits of fome private Dogmatifts may pretend to; Princes have generally obferv'd that Errors conniv'd at in the Church, have fuch an unhappy Influence on the State, that they could not poffibly let them pafs unregarded without endangering their Earthly Go

vernments,

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Having thus taken a due Care to affert the Authority and Intereft of the Sovereign Civil Power in the Affairs of Religion, we are to confider in the next Place, what Governours meerly Ecclefiaftical, or what the Bishops and Paftors of the Church in their Station are to do with respect to the fame Ecclefiaftical Concerns. And here we may affure our felves, that if Zeal in these Matters is requir'd in the Temporal Magiftrate, whether fupreme or fubordinate; then Negligence and Coldness or Indifference in them cannot be pardonable in the Fathers or Paftors of the Church. State Affairs, and their infinite Avocations may, in fome measure excuse the Civil Magiftrate: But the fole Bufinefs and Employment of the Bishops and Paftors of the Chriftian Church is to attend immediately on God's Altars; tho' it is always to be remembred, that their Dedication to that facred Service, does not take off that Duty which they owe to their Sovereigns, as they are Subje&s. That Obligation which lies upon Paftors, to give an Account to their Mafter for the Souls of fuch as are committed to their Care, muft certainly imply, that they ought to take Care, that nothing but Truth be offer'd to them: As they are bound to ftudy God's Holy Word for the Improvement of themselves in Heavenly Wifdom; fo they are obliged to impart the fame Word to others with impartial Plainnefs and Sincerity : It is their Bufinefs to animadvert upon all falfe Doctrine whatfoever; to discover and oppofe falfe Teachers; to give Warning of, and refute all Hereticks and Schifmaticks, all Venders of erroneous Doctrines, and all fuch as divide from the true Church of Chrift. For if it be a Charge juftly laid upon all

17.

Rom. 16. Chriftians, that they fhould mark or fet a Brand of Infamy upon fuch as create Divifions in the Church, and to avoid them, according to the Apoftle; then certainly, those who are as Watchmen, fet over the Flock of Chrift to give Notice of, and to prevent any Danger approaching them, ought to obferve fuch Mischief-makers with the greatest Nicenefs and Severity; fince the Wiles and Stratagems of Hell are fo many, and the Induftry of those Agents of Darkness so notorious. The Concern, indeed, of fuch Paftors is, to take fuch Care for Pofterity, that the Doctrine and Discipline of the Gospel may defcend to them true and unfully'd; and that they may be continually fupply'd with lawful Bifhops and Paftors; which Ends they are to profecute with a prudent and a blameless Zeal, that all the Powers of Hell, or of united wicked Men may never be able to destroy them.

Now tho' we look upon it as an extraordinary Felicity for Secular Magiftrates to join with the Minifters of Jefus Chrift in promoting the Interests of the Gofpel; yet we cannot but be fenfible how rarely it happens, that those who are exalted to the Supreme Height of humane Greatnefs will join fincerely in fo excellent a Work. Secular Grandeur and Honour have Abundance of Witchcraft attending them, and are too apt to prepoffefs and prejudice the entire Man And, at first View, there feems to be fo great an Incompatibility between the Religion of Chrift, and the Glory of the World, and the ordinary Methods of humane Policy deviate fo much from the Rules of Heavenly and faving Wisdom; that if fincere Religion and Piety be frown'd on, it can, by no Means, seem strange to us. But ftill the Promife of God to his Church,

and